Lisa Shock

Not directly, no. But, my husband makes a custard pie that's assembled cold with almost the same ingredients, then baked. And it always comes out with yellow patches and an uneven texture. There is probably a way to make the mix better and faster using some machinery, I just haven't seen it done. I have seen creme anglaise made in 45 seconds in a carefully tended, constantly stirred container in a microwave. (for competition) So, I suspect that it could be done that way instead of on the stove, but, since every microwave is different, it's difficult to give absolute directions and, I suspect that you'd have to run the mix through a chinois prior to baking to insure that the microwave didn't create any lumps by overcooking tiny areas.

The process guarantees that you've killed anything living in the cream. Since the custard itself won't go to the boiling point, getting the cream up to a high temp ensures purity. This practice does pre-date pasteurization, but is prudent, especially if using manufacturing cream and/or if you plan to hold the un-sugared custards for a couple days prior to serving. The process also ensures that the egg is really thoroughly mixed in, so that you get an even and smooth texture. And that the sugar and flavorings are also evenly distributed. It also means the mix cooks faster once in the oven. If you start cold, the egg has a tendency to separate out into yellow spots and the sugar may not fully dissolve -both situations resulting in poor quality product.

I'd be careful in your use of terms. A chocolate maker is generally someone who starts with beans and makes the actual chocolate. A chocolatier or confectioner buys couverture and other chocolate and uses it to make various candies. If you aren't making the chocolate from beans, I'd be careful about saying they are all 100% handmade. I am also wondering if you use any molds.... Honestly, I'd focus more on the fact that you are, presumably, using the freshest real-dairy (organic?) cream & butter without preservatives. 'To experience our genuine cream-filled confections at their peak of freshness, please enjoy before day/month.'

Whoops! I missed that preview button on the right side of the page! I like the step by step photos, they may be helpful to some readers.

My biggest reservation about The Fundamental Techniques is that usually, in America, talk of books for the home cook invariably means that the recipes are written in volume measure with cups and tablespoons instead of weight measure. I have heard that most UK cooks have scales at home, which is an excellent situation to be in. I would not take a step backwards to the outdated use of volume measurement.

Most restaurant reviewers are not trained chefs. Most film reviewers are not filmmakers.

As I stated, milk chocolate scorches at 115°, so microwaving it dry to 120° is burning it -even if you are 100% certain that you have no hotspots. Even dark chocolate starts to burn at 120°. People melting chocolate to temper it, etc. shoot for temps of 104° to 113°. But, you don't melt the chocolate for a ganache unless you are adding a really, really super-small amount of liquid. The chocolate chunks are presumed to be at room temperature, which for candymaking is 72° or a bit cooler. The chocolate is usually in amounts equal to or greater than the cream. The bowl is also at room temperature and serves as a considerably large heat sink. If it's a metal bowl, it conducts some of the cream's heat to the air and the table surface. The cream cools fairly quickly as it is poured, and continues to cool as it sits during the waiting period in ganache making. The chocolate chunks contain a lot of cocoa butter which is a fat. Fat is an insulator. It takes several minutes for the chocolate to get to the melting point because of the insulative qualities of the fat. Hot cream poured on the exterior of chocolate is a much gentler type of heating than exciting individual molecules from the inside-out.

The first book was very recently released and I have not had a chance to look at it. The CIA's most recent Baking & Pastry book (white marble cover) is ok, but, it's oddly lacking in basic recipes. It opts, for example, for banana or chocolate tuile instead of a basic plain one. And, it's got a lot of artisan breads, but no basic white or wheat bread. It's also lacking some classic cake types in favor of modern hybrids. So, I would not recommend it to a beginner attempting to learn on their own. Are you looking for a book with which to learn the basics of pastry-making (which I suspect) or, is she already comfortable and knowledgeable in things like making croissants, puff pastry, danish dough, cooking custards and creams, tempering chocolate, pulling sugar, assembling entremets, and piping classic forms? Honestly, the basics haven't changed much over the past 20 years or so. We have a few scientific discoveries on our side (adding all the sugar at the beginning when beating egg whites is best) but they are small finessing touches. I am glancing through my collection of books, and honestly, my first editions of several books (aside form typo issues) hold their own against many newer books. (there's only so many ways to repackage the same basic info) For a good solid basics book, I'd go with Bo Friberg's The Professional Pastry Chef. For more advanced topics, like sugar showpiece techniques, I'd suggest Friberg's The Advanced Professional Pastry Chef. Gisslen's Professional Baking is also a good way to learn the basics, and it's the text that the Cordon Bleu schools with pastry programs use as their text. For someone who has graduated from these types of books, I strongly recommend specialty books on individual topics. There are some great books on artisan breads, cake decorating, piping skills, sugar pulling and candy making.

Microwaves often heat things unevenly, and if you are getting a temp in one spot of 120° I suspect that you've got much higher temperature points in various small spots in your bowl. I wouldn't microwave any chocolate to a temp over 110° just to be safe. (if you are microwaving it, which I would not recommend for ganache-making) The ideal melt temp is between 104° and 113° for all chocolate. I don't like getting dark chocolate over 118°, and of course, it burns at/above 120. With white or milk chocolate you have milk solids which scorch easily and can coagulate into weird protein lumps just prior to scorching, so you generally don't want a temp over 115° -and closer to 110° is safest. Since you temped milk chocolate at 120° I can pretty definitively say that it was scorched. Also, the usual procedure is to chop the chocolate and simply pour the hot cream over it. Heating both items may have added to your overheating issues.

How To Boil Water has had several hosts, starting with Emeril Lagasse prior to his bigger shows. You may wish to check that link to determine which set of hosts you're remembering. I can't find anything uploaded on youtube, although there are recipes by that name from other people. I'd try both emailing and snail-mailing Food Network with as much info as you can provide. They have been through some management changes, but should still have materials around from old shows. They did publish a How To Boil Water cookbook, you may wish to track that down. Amazon doesn't have any images of inside pages, so, I don't know what recipes are in it.

I will admit that I am just guessing here, since I don't own a Thermomix, but, couldn't you make a batch and keep it warm and slowly moving in a Thermomix?

I'm wondering if there's an easy way to perform the chelation in a restaurant or home setting without affecting the wine's aroma and flavor too much. I found a little online, but not much.

THIS CHART should be of use to you. Hope this is what you are asking about!

Glad it worked! Be aware that some flavors get destroyed at high temperatures, so you may wish to add them when you add the fruit.

I'm really sorry to hear about this turn of events. It's clear that they did not deserve to have you there. Still, I know that being fired can be an emotionally draining experience. (and the loss of income is a real bummer) I hope you get an opportunity where people recognize your talents! We think you've done a great job, and gone beyond what was required. If you need a reference, send me a private message.

Looks like NBC has greenlit a new reality cooking competition show with what's being billed as the biggest prize in food show history, a four restaurant chain. Here are details at The Hollywood Reporter. No word on when casting/production will start.

I always thought it was a restaurant thing, of course restaurants as we know them didn't really start gaining popularity until after the French revolution -if I recall my food history correctly. I mean, any time people at the same table can order completely different meals, they will be plated in the kitchen. If you go back to the days when eating out meant going to an inn or tavern, then yes, an innkeeper generally made one big dinner and served it on platters and in tureens like a large household. But, as soon as menus offered options, plating had to start happening. The platters are what you are supposed to expect from a good/fancy meal in a private home. I have been to restaurants, most notably a Swiss place back in the 1960's, where each person got their main from the kitchen and the sides were presented in bowls for family style service. But, that may have been idiosyncratic to a few establishments.

cream of green bean soup minestrone steamed with beurre blanc or beurre nantais tempura mirin glazed -saute in a little butter first (with or without good ramen noodles) sauteed with oil, garlic, oregano, and tomato concasse korma mustard seed/green chile based curry with paneer, like palak paneer without the spinach tikka masala sauce (my garden produced a LOT of beans this year, and, I'm a vegetarian)

The reason why the Karo isn't as stiff is because it's a different type of sugar. It's primarily water and glucose. Glucose helps prevent sugar recrystallization. Honey is 38% fructose and 31% glucose, plus 17% water. Fructose is famous for adding moisture to baked goods and is very hygroscopic. If your source doesn't use sugar, brown or otherwise, I'd advise against it. My suspicion is that he is using a mix of honey and corn syrup and that syrup is there to boost the glucose level. This has two main functions, soft texture and less sweetness. (fructose is super-sweet and the reason why honey candies can be tooth-achingly sweet) I think that the results will depend primarily on how high the temperature gets, partly because at lower temps you may still have some moisture in the mix, but at higher temps any crystals will be dissolved and/or suspended in glucose. I agree with adding the fruit once the pot is off the fire. Let us know how it turns out!

Nope. As you may know, altitude affects the boiling point of water, meaning that it boils at a lower temp and food takes longer to cook because the steam escapes at a lower temperature. Pies are generally baked for such a long period of time and at temperatures well above boiling, that the altitude doesn't affect significantly. I always check pies for brown crust and reduced liquid inside before removing from the oven. Every batch of fruit is different so, every pie is different. (unless you are using canned filling, but let's not go there!) I view the baking time as a suggestion not an absolute when making pie. Pies may in general take a bit longer to cook at high altitude, but, there's no adjustments needed to fillings. Just follow good instructions, especially if using apples. Do not use Red Delicious apples in a pie filling, unless you cook them down, in a pot on the stove, first. I lived in Santa Fe for about 15 years, at 7,540 feet, and never had any issues with pies.

Pie crust isn't affected much, neither is fruit filling. That said, you may wish to try some of the newer vodka methods because of their reliability. Altitude affects baking because there are different amounts of air being pulled down on us, by gravity, at various altitudes. At high altitudes, you have thousands of fewer feet or air sitting on top of you. So, if you bake a cake, and you do not adjust the recipe, the air bubbles will grow larger than they would at sea level because there's less air pressure pushing them down. That sounds good, but, the recipe isn't formulated to support those extra-large air bubbles, so they collapse pretty easily and you get a thick dense crumb, and almost no increase in height, instead of a light fluffy crumb. Baked goods leavened by baking powder and baking soda are the most sensitive and will probably need adjustment -usually reducing the leavener. Items like shortbread, especially if rolled out thick, which are mechanically leavened by steam released from butter can benefit from an addition of extra flour. A good all-around cookbook like the Joy of Cooking will have a chart and instructions. There are also dedicated high-altitude books. Breads might theoretically need less yeast, but adjustments aren't critical since the gluten in the flour, if developed properly can support a lot more air than pastry or cake flour. Bread will proof and rise more quickly (meaning the yeast will have less time to multiply, thus arguing for using the same amount as sea level) and may require slightly lower oven temps, but, it's difficult to generalize without seeing a formula. Hope this helps!

My family always made the dressing with ½ sour cream, ½ mayo, lemon juice and sugar. We'd try to get at least two types of apple and leave the skin on, so there would be several colors. Pears would be added, if we had them, along with celery, grapes (try for a couple colors there, too) and walnuts. Nothing fancy, just flavors that worked and a nutritious dish.

I cannot tell you specifics, but this sounds like a variation on peanut brittle theory. Corn syrup will turn into a hard sugar if cooked until all the water leaves it, so, I'd guess that you want to get it to at least 250°. When boiling sugar syrup, the boil usually stalls around 230° for a bit as water leaves the mix. Is the sugar base clear or brown? This will tell you if you need to take it to caramel temperatures. Are you certain that the seeds are toasted first? When making peanut brittle, it's more common to add the nuts at 250° and allow them to cook in the sugar, adding a richer flavor. I would also be a bit nervous about the dry fruit. It can absorb some moisture and is probably what brings this mix together, but, I would be afraid of burning it. I'd just make a small test batch and see. If it doesn't work out, what have you lost -a cup of syrup and some sesame and fruit?

So, I watched the first episode on On Demand, and was less than inspired. I'm in agreement about the educational component, which was non-existent. I was hoping to see people actually taking some classes. Because of the show's name,you know. Oh, and that dessert demo was less than impressive. The chef didn't even trim his sugar bowls -the long sugar spikes hanging off the plate looked sloppy. And, ice cream and a few berries is pretty basic stuff. The signature dish challenge wasn't all that exciting, I tend to prefer challenges with some parameters because it's fun to sit at home and wonder what I would make if I had to, for example, make a 5 course meal featuring eggplant. Overall, I call the producers out for a bait-and-switch. We were sold a show about cooking school, when in fact, it's just another competition show featuring mostly amateurs. I'll watch a few more episodes, but, it's not a top priority.

I'd include gnocchi. And, I agree with the boiled/steamed part. The other stuff is part of the history of pie.